I know You Better Than Anybody Else
by IrishFrenchy
Summary: Takes place during Sucker Punch, right after Harvey socks Tanner in the face. Jessica knows Harvey like no one else does. She knows his mask and she hates that he wears it in front of her, even after all they've been through. She's the reason he is who is today, but hell, there's just some things they never talk about. Maybe, they should start. Jarvey


Harvey looked over at Jessica, his chest still heaving a little and anger in his eyes. He was half expecting her to yell at him but she didn't, she just looked back at him. No words were needed in those few moments that passed before Tanner and his little secretary followed him out. "Good riddance," he mumbled and sighed.

She made for the door but he stopped her, putting a hand to her arm. His touch was gentle and it got her by surprise. She just looked up at him, an eyebrow raised. He didn't say anything but he didn't need to, his eyes said it all. He was sorry, he wasn't necessarily sorry about punching Tanner. No, that was something he knew made her feel better just as much as it did him. He was sorry she saw him loose his cool, and most of all, for the _reason_ lost it. There were layers to Harvey, most of which Jessica had peeled through over the years. To this day though, they never spoke of his childhood. She knew the life he'd lead, the troubles he'd had, the ache he kept inside, they'd just never talked about it. She was probably the one person who could honestly see through his mask. She never asked about his mother because she already knew. It was plain to see and what's the use of opening old wounds just to confirm a theory you already know is true?

She shook her head and a little sigh left her lips. "Harvey," she began. He let his hand fall and he cleared his throat, his fingers working the button on his Armani jacket. And just like that, the mask was back up. He was back to himself, Harvey fucking Specter, the man who feels nothing. No, the man who tries to make it look like he feels nothing, that's who he was back to being. "Harvey," she repeated, her tone was more pleading than before. He sighed and forced himself to meet her eyes. "Sorry," he began. "I forgot what I was going to say. No biggy, don't worry about it. You can go."

She clenched her jaw in aggravation. She gave a quick glance over her shoulder to see if the firm was back to normal. People were no longer staring at them and they were going on about their days. "Harvey," she mumbled his name, her eyes slowly meeting his. "Don't be an idiot." Her tone wasn't a warning; it was more endearing than that. Her tone was full of something pretty damn close to caring. "What?" he asked her and his eyebrows drew together. So, he was just going to play dumb then? _Great._

She went over to him, sighing again. "I know you better than you know yourself," she began. "You don't have to… Wear this mask you wear. You don't need to keep it all in. Look where that's gotten you?" He looked nothing less than shocked. He couldn't even say anything back, so she continued on. "If there's one person you don't have to shut out, it's me, Harvey. So, please don't." She smoothed out his jacket a little and patted his chest. "It's okay. Don't look so shocked." He cleared his throat and shook his head a little. "Je-Jessica…" The way he said her name made her smile. "Stumbling over your words now?" she asked as she walked towards the glass door. "Come on," she said. "Let's go to my office. We can both use a drink."

He followed after her like a puppy, trying to focus mainly on just walking and breathing. 'One foot in front of the other,' he told himself and took a deep breath. She held the door open for him and together, they walked down the hallway to her office.

Ever the gentleman, he held the door for her. She thanked him and made her way over to her desk. He could only see her back but he knew she was in the midst of pouring them two drinks. He heard the liquid slosh into some tumblers. "Drinking during the work day?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. He chuckled a little and took the tumbler as she handed it to him. "Thanks," he said and she smiled in return.

They fell into a comfortable silence, both taking a seat on her couch. She knew his mind was in overdrive. He was thinking about the case, about Tanner, maybe even about his mother. She reached out and patted his leg a little. "Don't think about all that, right now. We'll get through this." He looked up from the floor, his eyes flickering from the hand she had on his thigh to her face. "I certainly hope so," he replied and a little sigh left his lips.

He noticed the hesitation as she pulled away from him. Hell, he couldn't _not _see it. His eyebrows drew together and he looked over at her again. A long moment passed where they just held each other's gaze. If they hadn't been in the office, he would have kissed her right then and there. He silently damned the glass doors and every single person walking by her office at that particular time. It just wasn't fair. His phone decided to go off and ruin the moment they were sharing, though. He sighed as he read the message from Mike.

_Hardman's coming your way, be prepared. He looked pissed, too. Just saw him walk down the hall... -MR_

"Oh great, here comes Asshole Number Two." Harvey's voice broke Jessica's train of thought. He silently thanked Mike for giving him a head's up. That was actually a very cool thing for him to have done. How he knew they were in her office, he had no idea.

They both looked up as Daniel Hardman came striding into her office, an odd look on his face. "You punched Travis Tanner?" he asked, sounding incredulous. He let his hands fall to his sides and he just shook his head. 'Who the hell are you to judge?' Harvey thought, gritting his teeth. What he'd done had been so much worse…

For a split second, Harvey's brown eyes met Jessica's dark ones. She saw the dark circles under his eyes and the way his lips curled into a frown. It almost pained her to see him lose the mask at times like these. He just looked like there was no fight left in him. Yes, today was going to be a long day. They both sighed and stood up, knowing there was no way around Daniel's wraith.


End file.
